Well, it looks as if one trend in music leans toward the familiar thump, thump, thump of dance beats and club mixes. Could it be that disco is making a comeback?
Yes, disco. Call it techno, call it dance music, call it whatever you want, but there's no mistake about it: Disco's alive. And while it might not be as glitzy and cheezy as it was in the '70s, the outfits these days are glam-slammed and chic.The music has always been there, of course; it's just been repackaged and marketed in different ways. Look around - La Bouche, the Bayside Boys and even industrial-cranking bands like Sister Machine Gun and Gravity Kills have played a part in keeping the beat alive. And when your ear catches the club reworkings of Madonna's "Don't Cry For Me Argentina," Toni Braxton's "Un-break My Heart" and Tori Amos' "Professional Widow," there's no denying that there's something like disco in the air.
Even U2 jumped on the dance wave with "Discotheque" - and on most of the band's new album, "Pop." Even the Village People have popped up in some interesting (Crash Dummy) advertisements.
Those who were danceably active during 1976-1979 will remember Shalamar, whose hits included "Second Time Around" and "Dead Giveaway." Many will also remember that Jody Watley made her recording debut with the band.
So, how many of you recall the disco line dance "Uptown Festival," an anthem comprised of various Motown tunes such as "Tears of a Clown," "Going to a Go-Go," "Stop! In the Name of Love" and "Baby Love"?
Well, get your platforms out, because Solar Records has joined hands with Right Stuff Records to re-release some original disco hits of the '70s and early '80s.
Among the re-releases are Shalamar's "Uptown Festival" and "Three For Love," Lakeside's "Shot of Love" and the Whispers' "Headlights."
Two of the albums, "Eyes of a Stranger" and "Street Beat," are by the Deele. While the music is mediocre soul flavored along the lines of Morris Day & the Time, music buffs might be interested to know Kenneth Edmonds and Mark Rooney - Grammy Award-winning Babyface and L.A. Reid, respectively - were members of the lineup. Boy, does a few years of experience and music training make a difference!
Lakeside never had a Top 10 hit. Nor did the group have a Top 10 album. But the heavier disco grooves were faves among the soul-music listeners.
"Shot of Love" was the group's first album. And though not particularly commercial, it was the best of them. Using punctuated vocal harmonies and funky-thunky grooves, the album stood out with a strong cool presence.
The Whispers' career began back in 1964. But it wasn't until the 1970s that the group's music hitched a ride into the mainstream. "Headlights" was the Whispers' fourth charting release. It contained no Top 100 singles but marked the begining of a more danceable sound for the group, a groove that would be perfected two albums down the line, on "The Whispers." Still, if you liked funky bass lines emphasized by phat horns, "Headlights" had it all.
So, if your disco albums are worn out, scratched up or just collecting dust, these new releases (on CD, of course) are void of pops, tick and jumps.
Put them on and see visions of roto lights, strobe lights, mirror balls, lighted dance floors, open-collar, big-lapel dance suits (with flared legs), glitter-peppered eye shadow and fog machines. And watch out for head-set sporting, halter-topped roller-skaters with feathered hair!